It’s going to be an interesting week in the Gun Control debate! There is of course, no massive gun violence disaster at the moment (unless you count crime rates in cities with bad gun laws), but there are some upcoming midterm elections… which explains why earlier this week, Democratic senators and Attorney Generals lashed out against an upcoming “Ghost Guns” apocalypse that could only be averted by new legislation, which could only be brought by new legislators, who are currently running for office.

That being said, there was a gun-related legal decision last month that kicked all of this off, and it does bear talking about. A quick recap: In 2013, the State Department demanded that Cody Wilson shut down defcad.com, a collection of downloadable 3D firearm files, claiming that sharing digital blueprints was a violation of ITAR’s weapon export controls. Wilson took down the files, and then sued the State Department, arguing that the order violated his First, Second, and Fifth Amendment rights.

To fund his lawsuit, Cody Wilson’s company Defense Distributed has been selling miniature CNC mills programmed to finish out 80% lowers for AR-15s, 1911s, and Glocks. After five years of legal back-and-forth, the US State Department finally settled the suit, paid back 10% of Wilson’s legal fees, and admitted that digital firearm blueprints could legally be published online.

This is just common sense; apart from his 3D-printable Liberator pistol, the 3D files Wilson was sharing online were mostly things like AR-15 and 1911 measurements and CAD drawings, information that has been publicly available and globally published for decades. It’s preposterous so say that information in one form (physical) is legal, while the same information in an other form (digital) is illegal.

However, this isn’t really new territory; the US government has been trying to control dissemination of computer code for decades as well. Major cases involved sanctions on the inventors of early encryption algorithms, and attempts to outlaw digital movies files on hard drives, while legalizing digital movie files on DVDs. Nevertheless, US legal precedent tends to favor the idea that computer code is free speech.

Which is why Cody Wilson’s new opponents aren’t attacking him on those grounds. Shortly after the State Department’s quiet retreat, the (Democratic) Attorney Generals of eight states (Washington, Oregon, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and of course, the District of Columbia) have launched a new lawsuit to shut Cody Wilson down again, this time on the basis of public safety, horror stories about potential terrorism, and because it was Trump who made the State Dep’t give free gun blueprints away.

If you read through the complaints from the various (Democratic) AGs and legislators, you won’t find any mentions of free speech, CNC machines, or the constitution. All they can talk about is Trump, 3D printers, magical machine guns showing up in “any public place.” At a press conference last week, Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut) warned that “these Ghost Guns are the new wave of American gun violence… They are undetectable, untraceable; forget about the TSA guarding the plane that you board!”

Nevertheless, I predict that this lawsuit, ostensibly aimed at Cody Wilson but repeatedly naming Donald Trump, won’t last long after the midterms. If it can scare a few voters out to the polls it will have done its job. Unfortunately, the demonizing of guns, 3D printers, computer code, and free speech will not end any time soon. We need to continue to defend all the tools that will allow us to defend liberty.

Check back on the blog, and we’ll be talking from about this issue, especially as it relates to 3D printing, gun manufacturing, and the ways that new technologies are affecting these issues.

Looks a lot like a video game doesn’t it? HK USPs have definitely been glorified in a number of stealth-shooter video games from the late 90s and early 2000s. I’m currently trying out this particular setup and will probably produce a YouTube video on it in the near future.

People ask me all the time: “Irons in front or behind the optic?” In my opinion… it doesn’t matter. I believe both have enough pros and cons that neither is majorly superior over the other. When I shoot either of these pistols I have never once thought “wow, something is off… I can’t shoot this as well as the other because of the rear sight placement.”

Concern yourself with developing actual skill. Because THAT is what matters.

The IDF just announced the newest generation of their Merkava 4 main battle tank, which benefits from some impressive upgrades. The armor is improved, the engine got a power boost, and the 120mm main gun has much better thermal characteristics… but some of the biggest new features are computer and software-based.

That main gun’s targeting computer is more accurate now, and can even compute firing solutions for knocking out airborne helicopters – with regular unguided anti-tank ammo – while on the move. But more importantly, the computer is constantly analyzing data from countless radar, video, and thermal sensors to identify, prioritize, and then automatically aim the turret at threats.

The tank’s three crew members can see all this stacked sensor data in the VR displays of their helmets, giving them a 360 degree view around the tank and overlays of target information. This isn’t really brand-new tech; helicopter pilots have had helmet-mounted displays for a long time, and the new F-35 helmet gives pilots a 360 degree view “through” the aircraft.

However, it’s the combination of a bunch these existing technologies in the Merkava that makes it interesting. The AI target identification computer combined with an advanced ballistics computer and auto-aiming turret means incredibly fast firing capability. The combination of a powerful central computer and VR helmets means that every Merkava 4 tank is also a Merkava 4 simulator (and tank mechanic training tool).

More importantly, the combination of many kinds of sensor data into a single view means much better decision-making for the tank commander. As cameras, thermal sensors, radar and radio equipment gets smaller and AI technology gets more advanced, we’re going to see more and more SIGINT work moving from human analysts to computers, and from large intelligence units to individual vehicles like aircraft and tanks. Eventually we will see some of these capabilities coming to individual soldiers.

One of the main issues with the SCAR series of rifles, is setting them up with lasers. The folding front sight always seems to get in the way. This particular setup works very well however. A Kinetic Development or Midwest Industries extended rail allows the laser unit to be mounted out near the muzzle and lower in relation to the optic.

The problem with running a shorter extended rail is that you can’t have the front sight stowed AND the laser mounted. So the front sight has to be in the upright position, or… simply folded onto the PEQ. I shot this configuration for a few hours and the front sight never popped up. It’s a pretty slick setup. Although it triggers a lot of people’s OCD. haha

Finding the right optic for a Scar 17 DMR build can be tricky. The Leupold MK8 CQBSS is a pretty awesome option. It’s also rated for the unique delayed Scar 17 recoil. The CQBSS is also pretty easy to run up close on 1.1 power.

Here at T.Rex Arms, the Surefire X300 is our favorite all-around pistol light. It may not be the smallest, the cheapest, or even the brightest light on the market, but it wins on overall features and ergonomics. Earlier this year, Surefire improved on the X300 with the XH35, which increased the brightness from 600 to 1000 lumens, and added switches to control new low-light and strobe modes.

Unfortunately, it also had a new, much wider “Maxvision” beam pattern. When using the XH35, those extra 400 lumens seem to be spread down by your feet instead of being thrown downrange towards your target. Floodlights can have certain advantages over spotlights, but we prefer a much tighter, more focused weapon light.

That’s why we’ve been looking forward to seeing this new XH30 light, which promises to combine the fancy new features of the XH35 with the tightly-focused light beam of the X300. Surefire announced that the XH30 has begun shipping this week, and we’re looking forward to running it through its paces to see if it can replace the X300 as our new overall favorite pistol light.

The XH30 is compatible with Surefire’s Masterfire holster, which means it will also work with our XH35 Ragnarok, and our upcoming XH35 Sidecar.

T.REX ARMS specializes in providing conventional and unconventional equipment for preserving human life. The products we manufacture are in service with citizens, law enforcement officers, military personnel, and members of the special operations community.